Russell Westbrook’s first season with the Lakers was anything but smooth as the veteran point guard struggled to find his stride on a team that fell short of expectations.
During his exit interview on Monday, Westbrook reflected on his play and L.A.’s tumultuous season. The former All-Star said he believes he was never given a fair opportunity to contribute and faced unfair scrutiny from Day 1.
“When I first got here and just being a person that, unfortunately, people create narratives of me and who I am and what I do, what I believe in that are just not true," Westbrook told reporters. "I’m always having to, like, prove myself again year after year after year which is, to me, just unfair, there’s really no reason I have to do that. So, when I first got here, I just felt that I never was given a fair chance just to be who I needed to be to be able to help this team.”
Coming into the season, Westbrook’s fit alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis produced both optimism and concern due to his ball-dominant play style. That conversation quickly became a weekly topic of discussion, as the Lakers struggled with health and chemistry en route to finishing the season 33–49, their worst record since 2016–17.
The former All-Star drew waves of criticism for what many viewed as a performance not on par with his usual standard; the response even turned into vitriol with some fans going as far as casting threats towards Westbrook and his family. The 33-year-old concluded the year averaging 18.5 points per game–his lowest since his second season–7.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists on 44% shooting from the field and 30% from three.
As questions surrounding his future with the team continue to swirl, Westbrook admitted he was unhappy with his performance, and took responsibility for his role in the Lakers’s failed campaign.
“I’m big on putting a ton of pressure on myself coming into any situation. Just my play in general, not my best season, just going off my own personal because that’s the only thing I go off of regardless of the season,” he said. “I know that a lot of people outside of here and media, whatever that may be, have their own expectations of how they see I’m supposed to play or what numbers I’m supposed to put up, but for me personally, I put myself on a very, very high scale and, yeah, I’m not happy with the way the season prevailed from that perspective.”
With one year remaining on his current contract, it remains unclear if Westbrook will stay with the club for the 2022–23 season. The speculation will likely increase when he makes a decision on whether or not he will opt into his $47 million player option, which he said he is currently undecided on.
The Lakers have already begun their offseason overhaul with the firing of coach Frank Vogel on Monday morning, the first of an anticipated slew of moves in the months to come.
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